Overview
- Police charged Ioannis Aidinidis, 46, on Friday, 29 May with assisting a foreign intelligence service under section 3(2) of the National Security Act and remanded him in custody ahead of an Old Bailey hearing on 19 June.
- Prosecutors told court he made two UK visits in April and May to photograph homes, vehicles and registration plates and on the second trip allegedly installed a covert camera hidden in a sock that could transmit data abroad.
- Aidinidis was arrested in West Sussex on 16 May, is a Greek national who lives in Munich, and court evidence indicated messages on his phone showed payments from overseas and possible related surveillance in Italy.
- Counter Terrorism Policing London said the allegations are believed to relate to Iran, that there is not thought to be a wider threat to the public, and that officers are providing security advice to Persian‑language media and others.
- The prosecution comes against a backdrop of repeated threats to Iran International, including a temporary relocation to Washington in 2023 and recent attacks and an attempted arson that have alarmed exiled Persian‑language journalists.